By IANS,
Kathmandu : All eyes turned to Nepal’s neighbour India Thursday as a Maoist protest kept the country paralysed for the fifth day in a row, with the ruling parties failing to reach an understanding with the former guerrillas.
India’s ambassador to Nepal Rakesh Sood held consultations with Maoist chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda early Thursday morning at the latter’s residence in the capital, creating a buzz in the log-jammed capital.
The meeting came after embattled Nepali Prime Minister Madav Kumar Nepal met Sood and over 40 heads of foreign diplomatic missions in Nepal Wednesday to seek the support of the international community.
Though there was no immediate comment on the meeting from the Indian side, Prachanda’s aides guardedly said he had told the Indian envoy his party was ready to continue the dialogue with the ruling parties so that a negotiated settlement could be reached.
The visit of a senior Maoist leader to India also fuelled speculation that the former rebels, despite their anti-India rhetoric in recent days, were trying to reach out to Indian leaders.
Ram Karki, who had been nominated by the Maoists as ambassador to India but was turned down by New Delhi, is in the Indian capital to attend a public meeting called by an NGO.